Have you ever been told that you have a communication problem? This is a standard fall line that authoritarians use to intimidate people who they want to control. If they can convince you that you can't communicate, then anything and everything they want to blame you for is suddenly justified. In reality these people have no imagination and are simply using a scene they (or one of their primate ancestors) saw in a movie that impressed them as a way to justify their self imposed authority, just as the Captian does to Cool Hand Luke.
However, communication is not simply one person's responsiblity. It involves many parts. There are books written on the subject of communication. There are industries that exist over dealing with this thing we call communication. There are scholars who spend decades researching every aspect of this deep and far reaching subject. Departments of colleges are dedicated to communication. So how then is it possible that Cool Hand Luke is solely responsible for a 'failure to communicate'? What if what he has to say isn't understood, is misunderstood, is ignored, is belittled, or marginalized? What if he is misinterpreted, or the person receiving the message speaks a different language or perceives a different meaning? What if Cool Hand Luke has no intention of being understood, nor cares if his message is heard or received?
What if Cool Hand Luke isn't listening, doesn't want to listen, or thinks the person talking is a total jackass? What if the person talking is a total jackass and has nothing of any merit to bother listening to? What if authority should always be questioned, and never accepted without question? That's not necessarily a failure to communicate. That's just telling someone to fuck off.
However, communication is not simply one person's responsiblity. It involves many parts. There are books written on the subject of communication. There are industries that exist over dealing with this thing we call communication. There are scholars who spend decades researching every aspect of this deep and far reaching subject. Departments of colleges are dedicated to communication. So how then is it possible that Cool Hand Luke is solely responsible for a 'failure to communicate'? What if what he has to say isn't understood, is misunderstood, is ignored, is belittled, or marginalized? What if he is misinterpreted, or the person receiving the message speaks a different language or perceives a different meaning? What if Cool Hand Luke has no intention of being understood, nor cares if his message is heard or received?
What if Cool Hand Luke isn't listening, doesn't want to listen, or thinks the person talking is a total jackass? What if the person talking is a total jackass and has nothing of any merit to bother listening to? What if authority should always be questioned, and never accepted without question? That's not necessarily a failure to communicate. That's just telling someone to fuck off.
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